RichardKs wanderings: Boxstering - clever? And farewell, Cruiser!

[IronStar]

21 minutes ago, RichardK said:

This is the one I like the look of:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005007002786673.html

That one doesn't do wireless CarPlay / Android Auto, that would be a deal breaker for me.

[RichardK]

1 hour ago, IronStar said:

That one doesn't do wireless CarPlay / Android Auto, that would be a deal breaker for me.

I'm not worried about wireless as I'm absolutely hopeless at remembering to charge my phone, so plugging it in is a benefit not a drawback

[RichardK]

Finally found a picture of some Mercedes T1/601 panels from the back that shows the structure of the inner wing, and the reason I can't find the part that is rusty is because...

...it's part of the front wing. Duh. So if I replace the front wings, I get new filler panels as well.

This makes the MOT fail EVEN MORE CONFUSING, but reinforces the idea that what I should do is just replace the bonnet and front wings, sand and redo the front panel, and just make the damn thing look nice again.

Simple, right? Of course not. None of these pieces are genuine Mercedes. They're all these mail-order, terrible pictures, brands I've never heard of replacement panels. They could be stamped on the same tools thrown away from the Bremen plant. They could be shaped by a farmworker in Vietnam as a side hustle, working from pictures. I have literally no idea what kind of quality the pressing will be, what thickness and standard the steel is, no idea of how well it will fit.

I did find one company claiming to offer a galvanised metal bonnet. So I'm going to order the bonnet and front wings (sadly the front wings don't claim to be galvanised) from them and see what i get. It needs them anyway, the bonnet is holed and as it's a bolt-on part I can't mess it up too much I think.

[IronStar]

12 minutes ago, RichardK said:

I'm not worried about wireless as I'm absolutely hopeless at remembering to charge my phone, so plugging it in is a benefit not a drawback

Should be fine then, and you really can’t go wrong at that price. Bonus points for wired being a bit more stable connection than wireless.

[RichardK]

Tried to tidy up the stainless steel exhaust trim on the Boxster. Yes, it's not important, but it had a rusted in bolt where the head had disintegrated so was probably adding to the rattles, plus a new one is LOTS OF MONEY. It's stainless all the way through so should clean up.

Managed to remove it by chiselling the edge off the bolt and careful pry-bar applications. but the remains of the bolt will not budge, Molegrips, no. Stud extractor - I am now minus one size of stud extractor. Drill is also minus the pilot drill bit.

I will be very pleased when I do finally defeat the bloody thing. The captive nut looks like a very nice design once cleaned of the rust from the bolt!

[RichardK]

Mucky

Rusty

(It used to be an M8 x 16mm bolt)

Chisel, pry, into the degreaser

Still very determined

Vice grips: no

Heat: no

Stud extractor - succeeded in pilot hole, bore, etc then...

snapped the extractor.

Got very annoyed. Put stumpy end of bolt in a vice with not much movement, twisted.

It budged.

Twist more. More WD40.

Very slow and faffy but...

Cleaned threads out, ordered titanium alloy race spec dual-head (hex and allen key) bolt.

Why all this effort on a tailpipe trim?

[RichardK]

You Won't Believe This One Neat Trick

[RichardK]

One small step

[RichardK]

And thanks to the post, some more even smaller steps

Old number plate bit

Such a minor thing, and hidden, but it makes a difference in my head

There

And the weird rubber screws...

Covers for scuttle

Don't torque it right up. That won't help.

this is how they work

Locate in hole on strut top

No more rattles (there. other rattles are available).

[jonathan_dyane]

Just to warn you, there is a box section along the bottom of the Merc bulkhead which the rotten area of the front wings covers. This will probably be rotten too.

[RichardK]

41 minutes ago, jonathan_dyane said:

Just to warn you, there is a box section along the bottom of the Merc bulkhead which the rotten area of the front wings covers. This will probably be rotten too.

For a moment I thought you meant the Boxster 😂

The bulkhead seems okay - I have poked it while trying to work out WTF the garage was on failing it for a lip of wing/inner arch overlap and putting it as a chassis rail - but I think once the front wings/bonnet/etc. are off, the sparkly stick action for fixing the bulkhead and floor would be almost halfway there anyway!

[RichardK]

Now it's definitely mine and I think I want it to stay:

Mid engined Porsche things

Nice place to sit

But now the garage is empty someone else dashes in

Had to remove this. Any other firm would make the diff drain hole accessible - BMW make it clever-easy to remove the crap they put in the way at least.

Spare wheel on the way from Windleys. I think the strap is broken but not sure how.

Leave it draining

Girlfriend had ways of getting me out from under car

So leaving it for now. Tomorrow I will fill this one and rust treat & waxoyl under here then refit the spare wheel carrier after cleaning it up a bit.

Then I need to do transfer case and front diff, Front looks hardest.

Fairly sure I can feel movement in the prop centre bearing. It needs doing ASAFP for my own sanity, but so does the front suspension's array of bushes, links and rattlesnakes.

[Zelandeth]

Sorry to hear the van needs welding!

If you're pulling the front apart that far anyway, worth going one step further to pull the dash and windscreen to sort the scuttle and heater intake boxes?  At least then it's just done.